Closing Chapter
by pyrosnap
Summary: With every end is a new beginning. AU sasuxsaku


**Closing Chapter**

_pyrosnap_

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto.

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It was a hot summer day when she first saw him. She was working under the sun for community service hours and when she happened to look up, she saw him laughing with his friend (which turned out to be his cousin). He was the most beautiful person she had ever seen and for a moment she stared at him before quickly looking away, cheeks tinged as pink as her bubblegum hair.

Later on that afternoon, while she was working on tying trash bags, she noticed he was having trouble. Seeing this as an opportunity, she quickly reached over and helped him, giving him a shy smile when she finished.

He smiled a small smile back and she felt as if her heart was going to explode. He started talking to her and she began to look forward to Saturdays when they would see each other. She found out that they went to the same school (why hadn't she noticed him before?). She found out so many things about him and she was always giddy in his presence.

When summer ended and the leaves on the trees began to turn a golden yellow, school started. Hurrying through the hallways, she searched frantically for the dark haired boy and finally caught a glimpse of him sitting under a tree with his friends. She pretended to walk by him and was delighted when he called her name and said hello. Flashing him a smile, she cheerfully waved before hurrying away, hoping he didn't see the blush on her cheeks.

In October, he asked her out and it was such a terrifying yet beautiful moment. They had been walking together and eating ice cream when her overprotective mother caught them. Despite what had happened, when they had returned school, he suddenly pulled her into an embrace and murmured into her ear "Would you be my girlfriend?" and she was more than happy to say yes. But, when she returned home, there were screams and she cried because she was so happy but she was so sad.

He asked her later if she was okay and she quickly told him she was alright. He never questioned her and she was content with that.

They were a happy couple. People watched them enviously and she loved being in the spotlight. When they walked down the hallways, fingers linked together, she lifted her chin a little higher when people caught sight of them and whispered jealously.

But behind the happiness, there was a brooding monster waiting in the dark, waiting for the moment to appear and wreak havoc.

One day, he asked her to spend the afternoon at her house and she agreed. But when they got home, he promptly crawled into his bed and fell asleep, leaving her confused and annoyed. After an hour of empty silence, she quickly grabbed her shoes and stormed out. A hand gripped her wrist and he whispered "Don't go" into her ear. She struggled but he was too strong and soon she stilled as he hugged her from behind. "I'm sorry," he said and she was shocked to see a trail of tears dripping down his face. "Don't leave me." She nodded and handed him a tissue, looking away awkwardly. They spent the rest of the afternoon cuddling in his bed.

Afterwards, he changed.

Whenever she went to his house, he would fall asleep and she would leave annoyed and irritated. He never apologized but stared at her stonily whenever she angrily confronted him. He shrugged and said he was just tired and she should accept it. She was so sad, sometimes she even cried but he gazed at her blankly and looked away.

She pretended she was okay. After fighting there would be a tense silence between them and she always reached out her hand and started a conversation with him. She was hurt he never took the initiative to start talking to her.

She began to notice the girls that were always around him. As a girl herself, she knew how other girls thought. Girls were evil creatures, ruthless enough to break happy people apart. She was particularly wary of the redhead Karin, whom she has heard had a fling with her boyfriend before. Karin never approached the dark haired boy whenever she was with him, but she heard that they were still close friends. Whenever she happened to see them together, she would gnaw on her lips in worry until they bled.

She told him about her insecurities and he coldly told her to stop being so jealous. His words stabbed her in the heart, but she tried to smile and nod. He offered no other words of comfort and left.

The day she saw them together was heartbreaking. She had been driving home with her mother when she looked out the window and saw her boyfriend walking alongside the red haired girl. They were walking closely together and he was smiling at whatever she was saying. Sakura felt betrayed; he had told her that he was going to hang out with his friend from Suna who was coming to visit. She went home and frantically called him, but each time she heard his voicemail, her heart plummeted and she felt sick.

Finally that night, he called her back and she shakily asked him where he was that afternoon. There was a pause and he slowly said he was out with a friend, just like he had told her. She exploded at him, calling him a liar and a cheat and he snarled right back at her for being so paranoid. "Karin is only a friend," he snapped. "I'm not going to stop being her friend just because you don't like her." With that, he hung up and she cried quietly by herself.

For a long time she wondered what had gone wrong. She strongly believed they loved each other. But it seems as if their time together was running out and the distance between them was growing wider and wider. That night, she sat outside and watched the cloudy night sky, wondering where the stars had gone and wondered if her boyfriend was also looking at the same sky.

But then the inevitable happened.

Someone else made her happy. Someone else who was charming and sweet, who said all the right words came along and swept her off her dainty feet. Someone who was willing to talk with her deep into the night and laugh about silly things with her, someone who shook her heart which had stopped a long time ago. His name was Sai.

Sitting at a café, she looked at her boyfriend and knew this was it. This was the day their story ended.

Feeling her stare, he glanced back at her, dark eyes meeting her bright ones. He was surprised to see the sudden fire flickering in her green orbs, a fire he had not seen for a very long time. He smiled a small, bitter smile and said, "So this is it right?"

Knowing exactly what he meant, she took a deep breath, ready to tell him that she has someone else, ready to apologize over and over again (for what she did not know) when the words got stuck in her throat. She stared at him, the boy who had been hers, her love, her best friend. All the memories came rushing back, days they spent together nestled in the warm blankets, days spent laughing in the amusement park, days spent walking through a peaceful park. Confused, she struggled to catch her breath as tears sprang to her eyes. Looking at him, at his calm expression, she started to doubt herself. Could she really leave him, the boy she had loved? Her eyes pleaded him to do something to keep their relationship going.

He reached out a hand and brushed the tears off her cheek and she internally cursed herself for being so weak. He whispered, "It's for the best and I'm sorry for hurting you."

Clenching her eyes shut, she bowed her head low and knew that this really was happening, he really was leaving her. Hearing the chair across her scrape across the floor, she knew he was leaving, he was leaving, he really was leaving, there were footsteps, but she couldn't lift her head, she kept her eyes tightly shut hoping it was a dream, this was all a dream but the footsteps stopped next to her and she felt lips brush against the top of her head and her eyes snapped open –

"I wish you happiness."

It was a whisper but she heard it and she froze and time seemed to stay still and she couldn't think, she didn't know how long she sat in the chair, frozen but when she looked up, he was gone and she was alone.

Alone.

It was such a strange word to get used to. Immediately she yearned for his touch and she almost stood up and ran out to call out his name and tell him she's sorry she didn't mean it, but she forced herself to stay seated.

Was she really alone?

Yes, there was a bitterness in her heart, a sadness because their story had ended, and yet she knew deep down inside that a new chapter was beginning. And as her phone vibrated in her pocket, she smiled a small smile and knew she'd never really be alone.

Flipping open her phone, she ignored the text from Sai and searched through her phone contacts. Friends stayed forever and she quickly sent a message to a certain blond loudmouthed idiot, a brother whom she loved so much.

Who needed boys and relationshits when you had friends who stuck with you through thick and thin?


End file.
